Page 21 of My Ruthless Alpha (Alpha Outlaws Club #5)

When the movie wrapped up, and Sydney was feeling tired, she decided to go home for the night. Looking a bit more worn down than she had earlier, she said goodnight to us and then went on her way, leaving just the three of us.

While Miles mindlessly scrolled through some of the channels on the TV, I picked Margo up from where she fell asleep on the couch and carried her into her bedroom upstairs.

I smiled faintly, happy to see that she was so relaxed and content there. Ever since we told her about Beau being her dad and the two of us became more open with each other, there had been a definitive difference in her.

Margo had been mostly carefree before, but she could pick up on how things were between me and Beau, and as a result, she too felt even more at ease.

Just like I always wanted for her, she could play and explore and do anything she wanted without fearing what might happen. She didn’t have to worry about conforming to a strict alpha or having to watch out for anyone who might want to harm her.

She was safe in Beau’s territory and had the freedom just to be a kid.

Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry much either, and it made my job as a parent much easier to manage.

After placing Margo in her bed, in the room Beau had done up for her, I carefully draped the blankets over her and tucked her in before pressing a kiss to her forehead. She stirred a little, then turned over and snuggled in.

Smiling, I popped her nightlight on, then quietly left the room.

I made my way to the living room, where Miles had settled on some kind of flashy show I wasn’t familiar with while he lounged. After a moment, he sighed.

“You know, Beau should really give me a chance next time.”

Chuckling, I sat on the couch and glanced over at him, able to see his visible disappointment as he puffed his cheeks out and held the remote above his head lazily.

“Maybe he just wants to give you a few more years until he invites you out,” I tried to reason with him.

He huffed out a breath. “Yeah, right. I bet he’s afraid I’ll make him look less cool in front of his friends.”

“I’m not so sure your brother is worried about something like that. He probably doesn’t want you getting caught up in any trouble,” I said, hoping to put a bit more wind back into his sails. “Bars can get pretty rowdy sometimes. I doubt he wants you getting mixed up in all that yet.”

“But I’m not a kid. I can handle myself,” he returned, not sounding all that convincing. “Besides, I’m sure Beau and the others would have my back. They’re all pretty badass…I just wish I could hang out with them.”

With a faint smile on my face, aware of how Miles looked up to his older brother, I opened my mouth to speak when the front door flew open and crashed against the wall.

We both jumped, glancing at each other before looking over to the entryway. The moment the realization settled in, I froze.

It was him. Colton.

“There she is,” he sneered the moment his eyes landed on me as he entered the house. His beta, Hunter, followed in tow, grinning darkly. “The runaway.”

At the sight of him, I felt a wave of dread and fear move through me at once. Even if he looked smug, I knew his anger was roiling beneath his skin, barely suppressed.

Looking at him was enough to lock me in my place and render me almost completely useless.

He had found me. Right when I thought I was in the clear and didn’t have to worry about him or any other dangers.

The one I wanted to be as far away from as possible was right there. Approaching like he already knew exactly what he planned on doing with me.

“Who the hell are you?” Miles demanded of them, getting up far faster than I did. “And why are you here?”

When I finally reached my feet, my legs felt unsteady beneath me, and my whole body was rippling with adrenaline. I so badly wanted to run more than anything, but I couldn’t just leave. Margo was upstairs, and I knew I had to protect her above all else.

Colton stopped a few feet away from us as he sized me up, then Miles. As if deciding he wasn’t much of a threat, he chuckled. “I’m the alpha this one ran away from…but now I’m here to collect her while your ignorant friends are distracted.”

I didn’t know what he meant at first, but the pieces clicked together, and my brows furrowed. “What did you do?”

He grinned in satisfaction. “I just sent some guys out to the bar to make sure they’re preoccupied…. I can’t have those meatheads coming here and interrupting our reunion, can I?”

Miles glanced between us nervously while I grappled with the overwhelming emotions coursing through me, and he moved subtly to put some space between me and Colton. He gave him a hard look. “It doesn’t matter what you’ve done…you’re not taking her anywhere.”

A satisfied yet vaguely irritated look moved through Colton’s features. “And what, you’re going to stop me?”

Miles gritted his teeth and took on a more defensive stance. “I’ll damn well try.”

Panic moved through me, aware of the precarious position we were both in.

With Beau still at the bar with the others, only the two of us were here to defend ourselves and Margo. It wouldn’t have been too unevenly matched if Colton weren’t an alpha. That and Hunter’s size and raw strength, despite him being a beta, put them at an even greater advantage.

But looking at them both, I didn’t like our odds. I also didn’t like that Miles’ life was being put on the line just because he happened to be there.

“Nobody has to do anything,” I said, taking on a hint of desperation I couldn’t quite hide. “Just go before Beau comes back.”

Colton chuckled at that and shook his head. “You don’t need to worry about that, Faye. I’m sure he’s well and truly distracted. Bar’s can get quite busy on a Friday night, hm?”

Narrowing my eyes at him, I didn’t like what he was implying. More than that, I was afraid that his confidence wasn’t misplaced.

“Whatever you try and pull, he will find you regardless.”

“He can try, just like his little bro here, right?” Colton grinned, stepping forward again. “Now I’m finished with talking…let’s go, Faye.”

My heart felt like it was in my throat, and every part of me was screaming to run away as fast as I physically could.

But Miles swung before I could try and de-escalate anything.

He clipped Colton in the jaw, forcing his head to the side. With a sigh, he looked back down at the smaller shifter, expression sour as he wiped the side of his mouth. “I see…you think you’re a big man, do you? Come on, hit me again.”

Miles clenched his teeth at Colton’s taunts and swung again, but the latter grabbed his fist before he could and twisted his arm back.

“Now, now. Didn’t your brother teach you any kind of restraint?”

With an irritated grunt, Miles withstood the pain inflicted upon him. “No…but he taught me to be opportunistic.”

As Colton’s expression dropped slightly, Miles sank his teeth into his forearm and crunched down.

Surprised, his eyes widened, but he was quick to grab Miles by the back of the neck and yank him off to expose the bloodied marks his teeth left behind. He hissed in pain before gripping him tighter as he sneered at him.

“You wanna try your luck? We’ll see how much you can take then.”

Miles bared his teeth in response, fighting to get out of his grip to no avail. He was quick and feisty, but there was no denying how much bigger and stronger Colton was as he kept his solid hold on him.

Unable to stand and watch while Colton started retaliating against him, I rushed over and tried to get him off.

“Leave him alone!” I snapped, scratching at his arm.

But Hunter was on me before I could cause any real damage. He grabbed both my arms and hoisted me up to pull me away from the fight. His grip was hard and unyielding, and it made my chest ache, knowing I couldn’t break free from it regardless of how I squirmed and tried to fight against him.

I didn’t want Miles to suffer because of me, and every punch Colton delivered, putting him in his place, made my skin go cold.

“Stop—leave him—”

My pleading fell on deaf ears as Colton pinned Miles to the ground, who was already bleeding and panting while succumbing to his fresh wounds. He sneered down at him, muscles straining as he held him there.

“You have enough yet?”

Miles spat a mouthful of blood on the floor as he heaved in labored breaths, eyes already darkening as he looked up at him. He tried to wrench himself free, but it was no use.

“That’s what I thought…get her out of here,” Colton muttered, saying the latter half to Hunter over his shoulder.

More panic rang through my system at the order, and with his tight hold on me, Hunter started for the door.

I could hear Miles’ struggle as he tried to fight Colton off him, not wanting to let anything happen to me. He grunted as another hit connected with his jaw, struggling to say or do anything coherent by then.

Squirming, I could feel every alarm firing off in my head at once, but I knew I wasn’t going to get away from Hunter anytime soon.

Miles called my name weakly as if trying to will himself the strength to get away from Colton and stop them from taking me away. But I knew he was just as stuck as I was.

Panting through my struggle, I tried to look back at him, only able to see him lying on the floor while Colton got up and left him there.

“Miles!” I shouted, heart racing as Hunter brought me closer to the door. In a last attempt to do something, I called to him, “Watch Margo…and tell Beau!”

While I couldn’t hear any kind of acknowledgment from him aside from his pained groans while the two shifters forgot about him, I knew he would take it to heart. I had no doubt he’d do everything he could to protect Margo in my absence.

“Just shut up,” Colton muttered as he caught up to us, stopping only long enough to grab my jaw, force it open, and shove something in my mouth. He glared at me and added, “Swallow it.”

In my panic, I instinctively swallowed without knowing what it was, and more anxiety rippled through me. “What was that?”

“Enough mountain ash to knock you out…”

The words sent another rush of fear through me, well aware of what mountain ash was capable of against shifters. My heart pounded against my ribcage as I tried to fight and squirm.

“Let’s go,” Colton snapped at Hunter as he led him out the front door. “And don’t let her get away.”

I fought as hard as I could to get out of Hunter’s iron grip, yet it felt less and less effective as the powered mountain ash started to kick in, and I could feel myself becoming more lethargic. Trying to force my eyes to stay open, I concentrated as hard as I could to stay awake, but the farther they took me, the less I could feel my limbs.

“He’ll find you…” I murmured, noticing as my eyelids grew heavier and started to close for brief periods without me having any say in it. “It's no use…”

One of them said something, but it slipped from my awareness, and I couldn’t do anything to hold on to my consciousness.

As everything started to melt away, I could only think of them.

Silently hoping that Miles would be all right…that he would keep an eye on Margo for me. That Beau would come home before anything else happened.

I didn’t want to disappoint them. I didn’t want to lose them.